


Newsies

by Catswineandsushi



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-27
Updated: 2017-07-27
Packaged: 2018-12-07 19:22:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11630235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Catswineandsushi/pseuds/Catswineandsushi
Summary: After a mix up with newspaper add dating, Merlin and Arthur find themselves on the best date either has had in their entire lives. The more the night progresses, the more the two start to believe destiny had a hand in making the night a reality.





	Newsies

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! This is a one shot I wrote for a creative writing class I was in awhile back. I'm currently focusing all my time and energy into my other WIP "Dance Class" but I was going through my old docs and thought you guys would like this one. Thanks for reading and as always comments are appreciated!

Looking for love...in the paper

So many people put themselves into the paper. Whether they put themselves out there for a job, to sell personal items, or to go looking for love, people think the best route is to take out an ad in the personal column. 

Arthur had always read the personals, he read the paper every morning. On this particular morning he was looking through the pages and debating silently within himself. He had been single for four months now and hadn’t been on the dating scene in even longer. If the pina colada song was right, he should find his true love in these pages.

“Single white female, 20, loves summer and MUSIC. Looking for fun ;)!” Arthur read the personal aloud to himself and shuddered slightly. He was thirty and hated the idea of dating some stuck up Californian teen with a nose job. So far almost every ad he read screamed that exact description. The ads weren’t organized, it was just one large cluttered page of boxes with descriptions.

He sighed heavily but continued. “White, thirty, black hair, blue eyes. Shy, owns three cats. Looking for companionship”

This ad looked much more promising, Arthur liked cats. Maybe this is exactly who he was looking for. He also liked the part about companionship. It was worth a shot, what could go wrong?

One week passed and Arthur was sitting at the cafe he agreed to meet this mystery woman at. He had put his own ad out that read, “Single, white, blond, blue eyes. Enjoys the outdoors.” He thought it was practical. She had responded to his ad through an email. The two had messaged back and forth a little and eventually agreed to see each other.  They seemed to get along very well and have a lot of the same interests. It was funny, they got to chatting and hadn’t even learned each other’s names, they only went by their URLs.

It was exciting. Arthur had broken up with his ex-girlfriend four months previous. They had been together for two years when they split. The breakup had sent his heart through a meat grinder but he was trying to get back out on the dating scene. He was at least trying to meet new people. 

He fidgeted in his wooden seat, the cafe was quiet and only two other people were seated inside. He didn’t get anything to drink because he thought it would be rude to “order” without her.  
The door chimed and he glanced up, anxious that she had finally arrived. No. It was just a young guy probably there to order a quick coffee.  
He continued to stare out the window. The man didn’t get himself a coffee, instead he stood in the doorway of the cafe looking confused, like he was lost. Arthur glared up and met his eyes. He could only hope what he was thinking wasn’t true. The man had raven black hair and dark blue eyes. No it couldn’t be what he was thinking.

The man looked equally puzzled, he studied Arthur’s blond hair and blue eyes. He then looked down at the floor and took a seat at an empty table. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and typed on it quickly before setting it down in front of him. Not a second later Arthur’s phone lit up with a new email. This was the only time Arthur prayed his inbox was full of spam. 

“Hey. I’m at the Cafe, are you on your way?”  Yup. His paranoia was just justified. He stared at his phone for a second then looked up at the young man at the table. Their eyes met and the only thing he could do was laugh. He realized that the ad never specified male or female. The guy at the table burst into laughter himself. He picked up his phone and moved over to his table.

“So...unless I’m mistaken, you seem to be my date. pendragon1456?” The young guy was tall and thin. He had brilliant blue eyes, black hair, and a stunning grin. He spoke with an accent that was clearly Northern Wales, Arthur could only tell because he was from Devon himself.

“You must be magic1988. I’m Arthur.” He shook his hand and offered the seat across from him to the young guy.

“I’m Merlin. The ad never specified male or female now that I think about it...” He sat down at the table and studied Arthur’s face. 

“I realized the exact same thing. Merlin...that’s an interesting name.” He glanced across the table at his would-be date. 

Merlin smiled again, a beautiful and bright white smile, “Oh haha thanks, my parent’s were obsessed with all the old stories of the wizard Merlin, knights of the round table, and…..King Arthur.” He giggled again, this was too weird.

Arthur smiled and thought about it for a second, “My parents named me after my grandfather. Or at least I think they did, who knows maybe they meant to name me after King Arthur.” Merlin laughed. “Do you want something to drink? I mean of course you want something to drink, I mean, we showed up to a cafe...and...What I’m trying to say is are you thirsty? It’s on me.” Arthur found himself babbling.

“Oh I can get myself something, you don’t need to pay.” Merlin couldn’t believe they were actually going through with this so called ‘date’. He wanted to though, it was funny.

“No, I insist. After all what kind of guy would I be if I didn’t pay?” Merlin couldn’t stop giggling at every sentence that came out of Arthur’s mouth, he liked his sense of humor. He could tell that even though this wasn’t the date he was expecting he and Arthur clicked like old friends. Maybe this was the start of a good friendship.

An hour passed and both were still seated at their table, drinks were finished and now they were passing a container of mints back and forth.  
“I’ve never met anyone else that liked to eat mints like this. My father used to scold me for not sucking on them, he always said it was wasteful to eat an entire pack in one sitting.” Arthur laughed.

“Me too! Oh my god my mom would get mad if she heard crunching while I was sucking on them, ‘They aren’t meant for crunching on!’” Merlin leaned back in his seat.

“So where are you from? I mean originally.” Merlin could tell Arthur was from the U.K, but he couldn’t place the accent.

“Devon. We moved to California when I was in high school then ended up never moving back. I can tell where you are from. It’s kind of a gift, I can read people.” Arthur looked across the table at Merlin and studied everything from his face to his clothes.

“A gift really? Okay I’ve gotta see this.” He propped back up in his chair and stared into Arthur’s eyes as if to completely expose himself.

“Okay...You are from Northern Wales I’d say….Colwyn Bay. You use one of those ‘shower smoothies’ instead of individual shampoo, conditioner, etcetera. Your three cats are siamese and you recently went on vacation somewhere...I’d say Hawaii. You are close with your family and don’t know how to ride a bike.”

Merlin looked at Arthur for a second before laughing, “Okay so you were wrong about everything except Colwyn Bay.” 

“Wait really? I was just guessing but maybe I do have a gift.” Arthur couldn’t stop smiling and laughing, this was the most fun he’d had in a long time.

The evening came and the two men realized they had been talking all day. The sun was setting and they decided to let the evening continue. 

“I have to be honest Merlin, I haven’t had this much fun in a long time.” There was something about Merlin, a familiarity that he had never felt before. Something inside him that screamed,  
‘I know you. We’ve met before.’

“Me either.” Merlin and Arthur walked side by side down the sidewalk as the sun set.  
“You know if you’re up for it I know this great bar down the street. We could get a drink, this time it’s on me.” Merlin smiled warmly. There was something about Arthur that he couldn’t place, an energy between them. He couldn’t ignore it.

“I’d like that.” Arthur was just going along with Merlin. He couldn’t explain it but the last thing he wanted to do was return to his empty apartment. He could stay out all night with him given the chance.

The two men walked up to the front of a little green bar shoved between two apartment buildings, the front had a large metal sign that read, “Freeman’s”.  
“I’ve been here before, I know this place.” Arthur stated as Merlin held the door open for him. “Really?”  
“Many times, my sister works here.”   
“Oh that’s cool.”   
They both took a booth instead of sitting at the bar itself, surprisingly they were the only patrons at the time. The waitress approached their little table. 

“Hey Morgana, how have you been? Business seems slow.” Merlin talked as if he and Morgana were lifelong friends. She looked Arthur over from head to toe.

“I know Morgana.” Arthur started laughing this was even stranger yet. “She’s my sister.” 

Merlin smiled and took a moment to look the two over. “Morgana is your sister? This night just keeps getting weirder and weirder.”

Morgana laughed, “Hey Merlin, yeah I don’t know what it is about tonight but nobody has shown up all evening.” She turned to Arthur, “Merlin is a good friend of mine. How did you two meet and what do you mean this night just keeps getting weirder and weirder?”

The two men looked at each other speechless for a moment, “Funny story,” Arthur began, “You know how I was going to try newspaper dating? Well I found one, neither of us specified that we were either male or female….anyways, long story short, technically Merlin is my date. He thought he was meeting a woman and so did I. We got along so now we’re just kinda hanging out together.”

Morgana laughed harder than she should have, “Okay. I’ll get a candle for the table.” 

“Morgana.” Arthur started with irritation as she walked away. 

The two took a second before giggling again. This was probably the oddest thing that could have happened to them.

“You know,” Arthur started, “I thought today was going to be boring and when I found out that you weren’t exactly the girl I was looking for I didn’t have a lot of expectations...But honestly tonight has turned out much better than I could have expected.”

Merlin looked at Arthur for a second, “Yeah. I agree, to be honest I haven’t gone out and had this much fun in a long time.” 

Suddenly Morgana approached the table again with two drinks in her hands, “You want this evening to get even stranger?” She asked almost giddy with anticipation about what she was going to say next, “I brought you guys your regulars… They are the same drink.” She placed the two drinks down in front of both men. 

They took a moment, not believing what was in front of them. “Morgana this isn’t funny,” Stated Arthur thinking she had given Merlin his own personal order to freak them out.

“I’m totally serious Arthur. Alcoholic Roy Rogers both made with rum, extra cherries and only a ‘splash’ of grenadine. Both completely custom.”

“Wait. This is really your regular?” Arthur glanced up at Merlin who was staring at his drink.

“Is it really yours?” Merlin asked.

“Yeah…”

“Mine too.”

Morgana promptly pulled a candle out of her apron, placed it in the little bowl on the table, and lit it with her lighter.

Neither of them said anything as she turned around and returned to the bar.

“Huh. Well you have good taste.” Arthur laughed and held his drink up. 

“You do too.” Merlin picked up his glass and clinked it against Arthur’s.

Arthur deeply exhaled. He looked at the man across from him as he sipped his drink. Merlin’s eyes met his and their stare held for a second before the jukebox started playing. 

“Morgana is this really necessary? Yeah, very mature, do you terrorize all your customers like this?” Arthur raised his voice at her across the bar as she leaned against the jukebox with a hand full of quarters. 

“I don’t, only the ones related by blood.” She laughed as ‘Escape’ by Rupert Holmes played through the empty bar.

Merlin laughed, “You know this song is exactly what pushed me to start newspaper dating.” He giggled.

Arthur sighed, “Of course it’s what pushed you to start. It’s exactly what made me start as well.”  
At this point nothing surprised him anymore. The two could have identical birthmarks and it wouldn’t surprise him.

“Yup.” Merlin smiled to himself. Nothing could surprise him at this point either.

The night went along and the two had drank more than either expected. Morgana cleared empty glass after empty glass. It was now eleven-thirty and the two were comfortable with the odd situation they had fallen into.

“On the house.” Morgana smiled wickedly as she placed a piece of chocolate cake on the table with two forks. Before either could thank her for it she pulled a bottle of the counter and drew a chocolate sauce heart on the plate.

Arthur sighed loudly and so did Merlin. Morgana snickered and hooked the bottle onto her apron, “No need to thank me.” She turned around and scurried back to the bar before either of them could protest.

“Ignore her,” Arthur sighed. 

Merlin rolled his eyes and smiled again. 

Once the cake was finished and they had decided they had their fill of liquor the two men got up to leave. 

“Don’t have too much fun.” Morgana waved them off and cleaned their table. 

***

The night air was cool on their warm faces. It was a beautiful night, clear and starry. The two started walking down the sidewalk again. Their feet clapped against the concrete and neither spoke a word. The sounds of the city echoed in the distance. They walked until they came across a water fountain with a hard metal bench next to it. They sat down and both took in deep breaths. 

Arthur couldn’t ignore it anymore, the energy between them. He had to know if Merlin felt the same electricity. The drinks had made him braver and a lot more comfortable.

“Merlin?”

‘Hmm?” 

“So…. You can’t help but think that this is all a little too strange to all be by coincidence.” 

Merlin took a moment gaining some grasp of where this was going, “I don’t believe in coincidences.” He turned to Arthur.

Arthur looked Merlin up and down from head to toe, “Yeah. Neither do I.”  
He returned his gaze to the park across from them.

Merlin felt that if he didn’t say something now he might really regret it in the future, he had to know if Arthur was feeling this same connection, “Arthur, I just can’t help but think that maybe...this is…..all meant to have happened.”

Arthur turned his gaze to Merlin once again, “I’ve been thinking that for awhile. What if something brought us together for some reason?” 

Merlin got a puzzled look on his face, “Like….Fate?”

Arthur shrugged his shoulders, “Destiny?”

The stillness held and suddenly the sounds of the city disappeared. Merlin had always considered himself bisexual but never explored it too much, and Arthur had always considered himself straight. Then again, every relationship he had ever had with a woman went South fairly quickly.

“What if this is exactly how things were meant to turn out? I just feel like I’ve met you before, maybe in a past life. The second I saw you in the cafe I felt a sort of ‘energy’ I guess between us. You are extremely familiar and I get a sense of deja vu everytime I look at you…. This sounds weird I’m sorry.” Merlin scolded himself for saying all these things out loud.

Arthur took a moment to process what Merlin had just said to him, “I felt weird for feeling the exact same way.” Usually two people in this situation would have laughed it off, grabbed a drink, then went on their way. Even the cheesiest romantic comedies didn’t flow like this, the whole “destiny and fate brought us together” thing never happened in real life. Was this real? How did he end up here? He felt that if he started a relationship with Merlin he would dedicate his life to him not just date, he was afraid that if he proceeded with Merlin he would never not want him.  
He felt that if he proceeded with Merlin he would have to marry him, that marriage would be the only thing he could do.

Arthur was so afraid that he had really just fallen in love over the course of a couple hours.  
He had never felt the same way with any previous girlfriends even after they had been in a relationship for years. He was so afraid that Merlin would reject him, but by the way things were going, he seemed like he wouldn’t. Arthur had a clear opportunity for happiness. Maybe it was the drinks but he felt so connected to him. He didn’t even really know him but he wanted this. He wanted this. Maybe Merlin would break his heart but he didn’t care. He wanted this.

“I don’t even really know you, but I think us meeting means something.” Arthur’s voice was a  hushed whisper as he stared into Merlin’s blue eyes. 

Merlin’s chest froze, he had forgotten how to breath. He returned Arthur’s gaze. He thought about it for a second. He had never seen someone so gorgeous before, Arthur had large blue eyes that seemed to drown anyone that looked into them, he had sun kissed skin and beautiful blond hair. This is what he needed, everything they had been dancing around all day was coming to a head and there was no way he could stop it. He didn’t want to stop it. Everything about this evening screamed “soulmate”, every sign was saying he was meant to be with this oddly perfect human. 

“I barely know you,” Merlin repeated Arthur’s statement, “but I don’t think I can ignore everything that has happened tonight. If I walked away from whatever this might be…. I would probably regret it for the rest of my life.”

Just like that the two of them exhaled and connected their lips. The kiss felt like a shock, like the energy had finally been released, it felt like magic. It was a simple kiss but it it was better than either expected, it was sweet and filled with so much meaning. They held themselves there for a good five minutes. Arthur thought about it as he kissed Merlin, he had never had a kiss this warm or filled with this much raw emotion, this perfect. The release felt like it had been waiting for longer than the few hours they had known each other, no this kiss felt like it had been waiting a thousand years.

***  
THREE YEARS LATER

Merlin strolled through their new house, eyes taking every detail. “I can’t believe it’s actually ours.” His jaw hung open as he looked at the crown molding and wood floors.

“It’s ours, sure it only cost our life savings and we will be eating ramen for the next year but it was totally worth it.” Arthur laughed and strolled through the empty house. It was everything they wanted. 

“Definitely worth it.” Merlin smiled brightly, “Thank you.” He turned around pushed his lips against his husband’s. The two had been married for one year and everything was perfect. Everything they wanted was right here. The day they met had led to this, everything led to this. 

“I love it,” Morgana strolled through the archway. She grinned at the couple as they leaned into each other. “I mean it,” She glanced over the granite counter tops and recessed lighting. She giggled at the pair, they really were meant to be. She turned around to face the open door, “Well now that I think about it, it would look a lot better with furniture,” She laughed at her own joke.

The three stepped outside to the moving truck, first thing to do was to take the three cat carriers upstairs where the cats could roam around without being in the way as they moved the furniture.  
Arthur opened up the back door of the truck and pulled one carrier out after the other. Morgana held out her hand to take one but Arthur refused to give it to her.

“I don’t think so.” He stated as he handed Merlin a carrier and held two himself.

“Oh seriously Arthur? Carrying a cat isn’t going to hurt anything.” She stated as she looked down at her belly, she was really starting to show.

“Not gonna happen.” He continued to carry the two cats into the house. The baby she was carrying was four months along and he wasn’t going to take any chances.

“Why did you call me to help on moving day if you won’t even let me carry a seven pound cat.” Her voice was filled with frustration, “Why do men always act like a pregnant woman is helpless?” 

Arthur turned around, “Moral support.” He smiled brightly and continued inside. Morgana had readily agreed to be their surrogate but now she was realizing what she was in for. It was nice having Arthur and Merlin wait on her hand and foot at first but now it was getting annoying. She was always fiercely independent but now Arthur wouldn’t let her get a glass of water by herself. 

She defied him and picked up the lightest boxes she could find to carry inside. Arthur relented, only because he knew he couldn’t stop her. “Okay but only the really light ones,” He stated as if he was still in control of the situation.

Morgana rolled her eyes and continued to carry the boxes, “Do you have any faith in me at all? Why would I agree to carry this baby if I was just going to be reckless with the pregnancy?” 

“Just be careful,” Merlin stated as he came back down the stairs after getting the cats settled in. 

Morgana rolled her eyes so hard it made her head hurt, “Really? Because I thought I might go skydiving once we were done here.” She sighed and quickly scurried to the bathroom. 

“Hormones.” Arthur stated as she disappeared into the hallway. 

“Yeah.” Merlin continued outside to grab more boxes.

***  
5 MONTHS LATER  
Morgana sat in a large chair in the living room. “I swear to God if this baby doesn't come out of me soon I’m going to kill someone.” She glared angrily at the couple as they sat down across from her. “You did this to me! You ruined my body are you happy now? Huh ARTHUR PENDRAGON?” Morgana suddenly burst into tears and Arthur rolled his eyes, he got up and slowly took Morgana’s tea away from her.

“It’s okay. I’m sorry I ruined your body.” He stated blandly as he wrapped one arm around her.

“GET AWAY FROM ME!” She cried in response shaking his arm off, he went to walk away before she grabbed his hand again. “I’m sorry,” she wept, “I just love you so much.”  
Hot tears streamed down her face.

Merlin giggled, Morgana’s mood swings were hilarious. 

“Are you laughing at me?” Morgana filled with rage once again, “I just don’t understand why you take me for granted! You are the WORST Merlin Emrys! Just the WORST I never LIKED YOU!” Morgana forcefully jerked Arthur down to her level and cried into him. He just picked a hand up and stroked her hair.

She pulled her face back and leaned into the chair. One of the three cats jumped up into her lap looking for love. He was a big black cat named Lance and he loved Morgana, but she shoved him off her lap as quickly as he jumped on it.

She sucked in snot and looked back at Merlin, makeup running down her face, “I’m sorry Merlin, you know I love you. I love you both so much. Merlin I just… I can’t sleep, my back hurts 24/7, I’ve developed adult acne. Do you think I like dealing with these problems?”

Merlin looked at her unsure of how to answer, “Of course not, we really appreciate all you are doing for us.”

This seemed to be the perfect thing to say, Morgana looked at him lovingly then awkwardly started to struggle out of the chair. Arthur went to help her but she brushed him away, “I can do it myself.” She rocked back and forth before she ran out of breath. She sat there breathing heavily, “WELL HELP ME!” Arthur quickly went back to her side and helped up out of the seat.

She waddled across the carpet and wrapped her arms around Merlin’s head. She brushed his hair with her fingers, “I love you. I love you. Always know that I love you.” Her bosom had increased in size dramatically and she was basically suffocating him.

She released her grip and stood for a second looking at the two men. “But I am serious, this baby is no longer welcome.”

Arthur stroked her hair with his fingers, “I know it’s hard, but the doctor said any day now.” He talked to her soothingly and helped her back into the living room chair. 

“We need to figure out a way to induce labor.” She stated as she settled in, “Today.” 

Merlin pulled up some notes on his phone, “We’ve already figured out all the ways that labor can be induced but I guess we can start trying some of them. First is eating spicy food,” he said mildly.

“You have hot sauce.” Morgana stated this as a fact not a question, “Well? Get me some.” Arthur quickly got up and marched into the kitchen, he grabbed the bottle of sriracha and looked into the fridge.

“What do you want it on?” He called from the kitchen doorway.

Morgana threw him a glare, “A spoon.” Her voice was filled with extreme sass, she was shocked he even had to ask her. 

“A spoon?” Arthur retorted.

“I guess.” She replied with annoyance in her voice.

Arthur returned from the kitchen holding the bottle and silverware, “Okay.”

She promptly filled the spoon with the red sauce and shoved it her mouth, she swallowed then filled the spoon up again. She did this three times before a scowl formed on her face, she quickly reached across the coffee table and grabbed Merlin’s cup of tea. Without another word she spit the sauce into his cup, “Ugh I forgot, I hate spicy food.”

Merlin looked gloomily back at his cup as she set it back down in front of him. He sighed, “You could try exercise.” 

She glared at him and before she could take as an insult he quickly added, “It’s on the list.”

“No. Next.” she sat back. 

“Bumpy car ride?” Merlin asked.

“Sure.”

Arthur helped Morgana stand up and the second she was on her feet the sound of water hit the floor. Arthur had been cool and collected through this whole pregnancy but he suddenly got a look of panic in his eyes, “No no no no no no no.” He was not ready.

“Oh don’t worry, I probably just peed myself,” Morgana stated smoothly like it’s happened a thousand times before. She hobbled to the bathroom. The echo of her voice came out the bathroom not long after she walked in, “Nope definitely not pee….We need to go to the hospital.”

1 YEAR LATER

Merlin wandered through the doorway with his baby girl on his hip. She giggled loudly and gripped at his shirt. He smiled warmly at her before putting Rosalie in a highchair and joining the other two adults at the table.

“She looks just like you,” Morgana glanced up at Merlin before adding, “but mostly like me.” 

Arthur laughed and leaned back in his chair, “Are you sure you want to do this again?”

Morgana glanced up happily, “Arthur I’d love to, plus if I don’t who is?”

Arthur glanced down at the pamphlet in front of him, “Actually there a quite a few-”

“Exactly nobody.” Morgana sipped on her coffee, “Don’t you want me to?”

The two men looked at each other unsure of their answer, Morgana had literally turned into a monster when she had been pregnant. “Absolutely.” Both men answered her in perfect unison. 

“Okay then, I’m gonna carry another baby for you two.” She smiled.

***

Merlin and Arthur had Morgana carry a total of five children for them, two boys and three girls, all extremely close in age. “Escape” by Rupert Holmes had been right, the two found their soulmates in each other. Now all five children are toddlers and Morgana is engaged to a family friend named Gwaine. Everybody is very happy and more than content in their lives.

The second baby Morgana carried ended up being two babies. Twins. The babies were the only two boys the couple had and as they expected, Morgana’s second pregnancy had been even more stressful than the first. She had turned into another emotional mess, but was more than happy to volunteer to carry a third time. The last two times she was pregnant they ended up with girls. For now they believe that five is enough, but maybe they’d like more in the future.

All of this was because both Merlin and Arthur decided to take a leap of faith and put themselves out in the personal column. All of this was because they continued their date once they discovered their mistake. Every happy event that the couple has gone through was because they both took chances. It all worked out perfectly, now they are free to start their happily ever after.


End file.
